There is no such thing as canít; only varying degrees of don't want toTony Donohue

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InspirEmail No 176 - March 1, 2010 'Inspirational messages to refresh the spirit and boost the emotional bank account'

If you change one thing . . .

Looking back on your life, what would you change if you could?

In the classic 1946 film 'It's a Wonderful Life', the main character, a small-town bank officer played by Jimmy Stewart, is about to commit suicide when an angel shows him how different the lives of people in Bedford Falls would be if he hadn't been born. The movie is a favourite because it affirms how each of us touches the lives and shapes the future in unexpected and often marvellous ways.

More modern films like Back to the Future, Sliding Door, and Frequency are built on a similar premise: If you change the past, you change the future, often in dramatic and unpredictable ways. If you change one thing, you change everything.

Given the potential impact of every decision you make, it's wise to think ahead. Although few things turn out exactly as we plan, the better we understand how our choices start a chain reaction of events, the more likely we are to get what we want.

The enormous complexity of cause and effect leads to another conclusion: It's futile to look back at our lives with 'what if' scenarios. What's done is done. Although changing our past would change our present, it would do so in ways that are so unpredictable that we could never know whether it would be for better or worse.

Accept and celebrate the fact that what you are today is a direct result of everything that's happened to you. It's pointless to wish things were different. Remember, if you change one thing, you change everything.

Written by Michael Josephson

Michael Josephson is one of the most sought-after and quoted ethicists. Founder and president of Josephson Institute and its Character Counts project, he has conducted programs for more than 100,000 leaders in government, business, education, sports, law enforcement, journalism, law, and the military. Mr. Josephson is also an award-winning radio commentator. You can subscribe to his regular free Character Counts Commentaries on the website. To view the contact details please visit . . . Positive Inspirational Links >>>

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Changes for Life

First you make your habits, and then your habits make you. Break those habits that can break you. Adopt those practices that will become the new habits that will help you achieve the success you desire.

Your habits are a form of exercise. The harder you work at something, the harder it is to quit. The easier it is to do, the harder it is to change. Your habits are either the best of servants or the worst of masters. You are what you repeatedly do.